# During which years in US history has any party had 2/3 majority in the Senate?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [December 22, 2019, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218 "2019-12-22T02:39:54Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)
#### Post date: [December 22, 2019, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218/1 "2019-12-22T02:39:54Z")
If the precedent has now been set that impeachment is merely a “political process”, then future presidents are essentially free to commit crimes at will as long as they continue making decisions that favor their base. 2/3 majority seems impossible to achieve in the future, so was just curious as to how common it ever was.
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### Author:  [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)
#### Post date: [December 22, 2019, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218/2 "2019-12-22T02:44:56Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#):
>
> If the precedent has now been set that impeachment is merely a “political process”, then future presidents are essentially free to commit crimes at will as long as they continue making decisions that favor their base. 2/3 majority seems impossible to achieve in the future, so was just curious as to how common it ever was.
In theory, senators still have to worry about re-election, even if they aren’t at risk of becoming a super-minority.
But your concern of a democracy that is essentially broken is valid. I think an even bigger problem that the constitution has is that it requires 38 states to be amended, and these days, that means it can be amended for measures that are merely popular but not necessarily helpful (e.g. we’re much more likely to pass laws that protect the American flag from a lit match than we are passing laws that actually protect democracy, like campaign finance reform).
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [December 22, 2019, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218/3 "2019-12-22T04:22:48Z")
> [@asahi](#):
>
> In theory, senators still have to worry about re-election, even if they aren’t at risk of becoming a super-minority.
I agree. I feel Senators will place their own self-interest ahead of loyalty to a President from their own party. If Senators end up losing elections because they protected a President who should have been removed, they won’t do it.
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### Author:  [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)
#### Post date: [December 22, 2019, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218/4 "2019-12-22T04:37:47Z")
86% of the US senate was Republican at the end of 1869.
> **[40th United States Congress](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/40th_United_States_Congress)**
>
> The 40th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1867, to March 4, 1869, during the third and fourth years of Andrew Johnson's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1860 United States census. Both chambers had a Republican majority. In the Senate, the Republi...
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### Author:  [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)
#### Post date: [December 24, 2019, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/during-which-years-in-us-history-has-any-party-had-2-3-majority-in-the-senate/845218/5 "2019-12-24T04:59:33Z")
OP: By my rough math, [Party Divisions of US Congress](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_divisions_of_United_States_Congresses) shows 2/3+ Senate majorities in:
1789-91 (pro-administration)
1795-1801 (Federalists)
1803-25 (Democratic-Republicans)
1837-39 (Democrats)
1861-75 (Republicans)
1907-09 (Republicans)
1935-43 (Democrats)
1963-67 (Democrats)